He said unto them, But whom say ye that I am? Peter answering said, The Christ of God.
Jesus first asked what the crowds were saying about Him and then pressed the question personally upon the disciples, whom say ye that I am, and Peter answering declared Him to be the Christ, the Messiah. That answer identifies Jesus as the Christ of God. Many who had witnessed His miracles or listened to His teaching still did not recognize Him as the Messiah, esteeming Him only as a prophet or hoping He would set Himself up as a political king.
Peter and his companions held fast to their faith when others doubted that Jesus was the Messiah or withdrew because He did not intend to take David's throne, for Peter accepted Him as Messiah in His humiliation instead of waiting until He received kingly honors. So it was that some who heard Christ's teaching recognized Him as the Christ of God. The confession stands in the account of Luke 9:18-27 which foreshadows the cross, coming just before Jesus told His disciples of His coming suffering and set in the shadow of His approaching suffering.
He foresaw that suffering and willingly endured the cross to save the lost, for the joy of winning the world back to loyalty to God. By drawing out their confession, He gave the disciples opportunity to affirm their faith before He spoke to them of His coming suffering, thereby strengthening them for the trial ahead. The verse belongs to a section showing that healing and preaching were not separated but connected, and that something remains for the individual himself to do: he must take up his cross and follow Christ.
Jesus first asked what the crowds were saying about Him and then pressed the question personally upon the disciples, whom say ye that I am, and Peter answering declared Him to be the Christ, the Messiah. That answer identifies Jesus as the Christ of God. Many who had witnessed His miracles or listened to His teaching still did not recognize Him as the Messiah, esteeming Him only as a prophet or hoping He would set Himself up as a political king.
Peter and his companions held fast to their faith when others doubted that Jesus was the Messiah or withdrew because He did not intend to take David's throne, for Peter accepted Him as Messiah in His humiliation instead of waiting until He received kingly honors. So it was that some who heard Christ's teaching recognized Him as the Christ of God. The confession stands in the account of Luke 9:18-27 which foreshadows the cross, coming just before Jesus told His disciples of His coming suffering and set in the shadow of His approaching suffering.
He foresaw that suffering and willingly endured the cross to save the lost, for the joy of winning the world back to loyalty to God. By drawing out their confession, He gave the disciples opportunity to affirm their faith before He spoke to them of His coming suffering, thereby strengthening them for the trial ahead. The verse belongs to a section showing that healing and preaching were not separated but connected, and that something remains for the individual himself to do: he must take up his cross and follow Christ.